Rivals Roundtable: Transfer portal talk

Transfer season is in full swing, so this week’s roundtable takes aim at college basketball’s newest silly season. Below, Rivals analysts Rob Cassidy, Jason Jordan and Travis Graf get together to field a three-pack of questions.

Transfer Portal: Latest news | Portal player ranking/transfer tracker (hoops) | Portal player ranking/transfer tracker (football)

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2023 Rankings: Rivals150 | Team | Position

2024 Rankings: Rivals150 | Team

2025 Rankings: Top 80

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Cassidy: I think he'll probably land at Maryland and thrive there, but if I were Dickinson I’d take a long, hard look at Kentucky. The NIL money is obviously there for the taking. So is the ability to help his draft stock exponentially by playing on the big stage in Lexington. The Wildcats are in desperate need of a big man after the departures of Oscar Tshiebwe and Ugonna Kingsley Onyenso. John Calipari needs only to point to Tshiebwe as an example of a big man that helped his career by transferring to UK, so the pitch writes itself. As I said, it probably won’t happen but the opportunity would be mighty tempting to me.

Jordan: I don’t think he’ll go, but I like Kentucky for Dickinson just because of his abilities in the halfcourt set, and his versatility at 7-foot-1. This past season he pumped in 18.5 points, nine rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.8 blocks a game, and his ability to stretch the defense from the perimeter is what made him such a potent threat. Dickinson would mesh well with incoming McDonald’s All-American center Aaron Bradshaw, giving John Calipari one of the most versatile frontcourts in the country next season.

Graf: Like Jason and Rob said, I don’t necessarily think Dickinson will end up at either of these places, but Kentucky and Duke would be good fits. Kentucky likes to play through the post and he would have a high usage and be the focal point of the offense. At Duke, he’d fit defensively and offensively while having a very high usage rate as well. The NIL aspect of both of those schools, plus the consistent exposure would be good for his brand.

Cassidy: I was a little taken aback when I saw Kerr Kriisa’s name pop in there based solely on the success he was experiencing on a good team. The Arizona transfer averaged 9.9 points and a Pac-12-best 5.1 assists for a team that won the Pac-12 tournament title and grabbed a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament this year. When he first hit the portal, the way I squared it in my brain was to assume he was going to join former Wildcats head coach Sean Miller, who recruited him to Tucson, at Xavier. That, of course, did not happen, as Kriisa landed with West Virginia. It’s natural to wonder if he got a better NIL package at West Virginia because everything seemed to be going well on the floor at Arizona, where he started 65 games over the past two seasons. Surprising or not, however, the Wildcats’ loss is WVU’s gain, as the proven floor general is almost certain to make a splash in the Big 12 from day one next season.

Jordan: I’d have to say Max Abmas at Oral Roberts because he’d been so loyal to the Golden Eagles for two years following his breakout sophomore season where he led ORU to the Sweet 16 and led the country in scoring. He’s remained a sniper over the last two years, averaging 21.9 points, 4.4 rebounds and four assists a game this season, and now he’ll likely play an intricate role on a high major team with a chance at a deep run next March.

Graf: I’ll go with Houston’s Tramon Mark here. He’s been a key piece to the Cougars’ program and has scored in double-digits each of the last two seasons. This season, he started all 37 games for one of the best teams in the country and had the fourth-most shot attempts for Kellen Sampson’s squad. I guess he could be looking for a program with more usage and a bigger role, some place he can be the man, but he had a pretty nice gig in Houston.

Cassidy: I think Micah Handlogten is an interesting name based on his three years of eligibility and his rarity. The Marshall transfer isn't the most accomplished or hyped prospect in the portal, but 7-foot-1 guys that move well and have already proven capable of consistently flirting with double-doubles at the Sun Belt level don’t grow on trees. Handlogten averaged 7.8 points, 9.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game in his first college season and feels like the type of player that will see his production increase as he adds weight and continues to get used to the physicality of the college game. Handlogten isn’t a season-changer like a couple of the other names in the portal, but he’s definitely undervalued as a long-term prospect capable of impacting winning for years to come.

Related: Marshall transfer Micah Handlogten previews Florida visit

Jordan: I’d have to go with Yohan Traore. He never really got off the bench at Auburn, hence the portal exit this offseason, but at 6-10, 225 pounds with a versatile skill set I know he’d flourish in the right system and with the right opportunity. He took the recruiting world by storm two years ago, dominating the adidas 3SSB and showed an innate ability to impact the game in multiple ways on both ends of the floor. Given time and a chance, and I see him fulfilling his potential.

Graf: High Point’s Zack Austin is very slept on in my opinion. He’s a violent athlete at both ends and is a very good defender, averaging double-digit blocks and more than a steal a game at 6-foot-4. Defense translates about as much as any skill and his athleticism and two-way ability are very intriguing to say the least. Austin has a visit set up with Pittsburgh and has other high-major programs in the mix.

Related: Pitt hosts Austin on a visit